In Unexpected Places
by Juliet316 2000
Summary: Chris Jericho finds new job opportunities - and love - in the most surprising of places.
1. Prologue

In Unexpected Places

Yep, InVasion Era fic. This is slightly AU.

TITLE: In Unexpected Places Prologue?

AUTHOR: Juliet3:16

EMAIL: PG-13

CONTENT: VIOLENCE, ADULT LANGUAGE

CATEGORY: ADULT, DRAMA, ANGST

SPOILERS: Slightly altered InVasion storylines.

SUMMARY: Somebody finds new job opportunities - and love - in the most unexpected of places.

DISCLAIMER: Vince McMahon owns almost everybody in this story. The rest own themselves.

DISTRIBUTION: WWOMB, anybody else please ask.

_In Unexpected Places_

_Prologue_

_July/August 2001_

He gazed around the Alliance lockerroom and wondered why he bothered doing so. It was just the same old sluts and jackasses he saw every time at every show. Of course he knew he was a jackass, never had any illusions about being anything remotely resembling a good guy or any of that knight in shining armor crap. He was just another asshole like the rest of the Alliance.

The man looked over across the lockerroom where Alliance Owners Shane McMahon and Paul Heyman talked with Hunter Hearst Helmsley and World Wrestling Federation Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin. Helmsley defected the night the Alliance was born and Austin switched sides with the WWF title at the InVasion PPV shortly thereafter. The look on Vince McMahon's spoiled brat Stephanie's face when she learned that Helmsley used her trust fund to help Paul Heyman revive the ECW part of the Alliance was truly priceless.

"Hey, you ready?" another man came up to him, his tag partner for the night.

"Yeah, let me finish lacing them up," the man who had been sitting and looking at everybody and everything said, going back to getting ready for his match. Though the man sitting and his tag partner never really interacted much in WCW before Shane McMahon bought it, they'd wrestled against each other in other places, so they at least knew each other, unlike many of the alliance members who were now being mashed together in one faction with little or no knowledge of one another. They figured Shane would probably give some of the WWF defectors shots at Alliance belts that they held soon, so the two figured it made sense to stick together and watch each other's backs if need be. The fact that both were Canadian didn't hurt.

Finishing up his boots, WCW World Champion Chris Jericho followed his tag partner U.S Champion Chris Benoit out of the lockerroom.

Yep, I kept The Chrises in WCW to the bitter end in this one. More to come from this soon.

Note: Sorry Dana, that's the way the belt order came down in the poll. I'll make it up to you later.


	2. Chapter 1: A meeting

TITLE: In Unexpected Places Chapter One?

AUTHOR: Juliet3:16

EMAIL: PG-13

CONTENT: VIOLENCE, ADULT LANGUAGE

CATEGORY: ADULT, DRAMA, ANGST

SPOILERS: Slightly altered InVasion storylines.

SUMMARY: Somebody finds new job opportunities - and love - in the most unexpected of places.

DISCLAIMER: Vince McMahon owns almost everybody in this story. The rest own themselves.

DISTRIBUTION: WWOMB, anybody else please ask.

_In Unexpected Places_

_Chapter One_

_A meeting_

Jericho and Benoit came back, exhausted, but victorious against the Hardy brothers. Best of all, they won clean. Jericho did not mind playing a little dirty to get a win every once in a while, but he knew it made Benoit feel a bit better that they could get a straight victory without resorting to Alliance tactics.

Especially given the people on the other side of the Alliance/WWF war that Benoit used to be close too.

"The shower's all yours," Jericho said to his tag partner, towel on his shoulders, legs clad in his street jeans.

"Better not have used up all the hot water, like last time, Jerky," Benoit muttered, heading for the shower area.

"Ha - ha," Jericho said, rewarding the other Canadian with a rude gesture.

Benoit scrunched his face up in mock confusion. "Doesn't Austin have that one trademarked or something?"

"Only in his beer - swilling fantasy land," Jericho snorted before reaching for a clean shirt. Before Benoit could step into the showers, a production gopher named Mark Lloyd popped through the door.

"Chris, the higher - ups want to see you," he said.

"Which one?" Jericho and Benoit asked in unison to Lloyd's vague order.

Lloyd came further into the room and looked at the two men.

"Uh, Jericho," he amended.

"Wonder what the want," Jericho grumbled to himself.

"I'll be right there," he told Lloyd. Fishing out the keys to the tag team partner's rental, he tossed them to Benoit.

"I'll see ya back at the hotel, man," he said before putting on his shirt, grabbed his title and took off.

As he walked down the hallways, Jericho wondered what this meeting was about. If they wanted him to drop his WCW title to Helmsley, without a proper fight, McMahon could forget it. He won it in a mostly fair fight and he was not giving it up without a fight. He was not Kevin Nash.

He supposed it could be the potshots he had been making about the higher ups behind their backs. Though Jericho had no problem, calling things how he saw them, most in the Alliance felt it was suicidal to criticize the bosses for people had a way of getting hurt doing that. All one had to do was point out Billy Kidman for an example of what could happen when one criticized or mocked Alliance leaders.

As he walked in, Chris Jericho saw not only Shane McMahon and Paul Heyman, but Steve Austin and Triple H as well.

Suddenly, Jericho had this sinking feeling that whatever they wanted him to do, Jericho would be hard pressed to tell them no. Shane was the first to spot him.

"Chris," the WCW owner said, "take a seat."

Jericho sat down, feeling his brash attitude falling away, and left entirely uncomfortable in the room. Perhaps it was the way the four other men in there were looking at him expectantly.

"So, what can I do for you guys?" Chris asked, lacing it with the cocky swagger that really was not in him at that moment.

Shane sat down directly across from the WCW Champion and looked Jericho straight in the eye.

"We want you to defect to the WWF!"

Now what's Jericho going to do? Find out in the next part. :-D


End file.
